West Midlands National Park, the visionary long-term project to drive social, economic, and environmental transformation in the region, led by a Birmingham City University academic, has announced twelve award winners.

The National Trust, the Canal and River Trust, and a number of local authorities and councils including Birmingham and Solihull were amongst twelve winners recognised for producing outstanding examples of reimagining landscape, as part of the second annual WMNP International Lecture and Awards.

The 2022 winners represent a wide cross-section of projects, relating to the physical environment, wellbeing, culture, governance, finance and policy or research that align with the West Midlands National Park, the brainchild of Kathryn Moore, Professor of Landscape Architecture at Birmingham City University. She said:

“This second year of the WMNP Awards marks an important milestone in the delivery of the West Midlands National Park.

"We were impressed by the volume and quality of projects applying for an award and the list of finalists tells a story of creativity and innovation from across the region and beyond.

“We were delighted that the judges chose the City of Nature for their special award as this project exemplifies many of the core tenets that are embedded in our approach, and we would like to congratulate the project leads and the whole team at Birmingham City Council for delivering such an impressive and far-reaching project.”

The WMNP Awards programme, launched in 2021, is designed to recognise, celebrate, and share best practice, policy and research and to guide and inspire work that deals with challenges faced by the region that include the climate emergency, regeneration, environment, transport, identity, infrastructure, employment, skills well-being and understanding how to achieve a resilient green recovery. Andy Street, Mayor of the West Midlands, added:

“Our region is helping to lead the way when it comes to tackling the climate emergency – thanks to our #WM2041 net zero commitment and focus on sustainable forms of economic growth.

"The West Midlands National Park endeavour is an important contributor to our overall vision of environmental excellence and these WMNP Project Awards demonstrate our desire to move from words to action – showcasing outstanding ways in which we can reimagine landscape.

“Congratulations to all of the award winners and to the West Midlands National Park team.”